


i bloom, just for you

by teokkityun



Category: TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, Hanahaki Disease, In Which Taehyun Suffers, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Pining, TW: slight panic attack, TW: some blood, Temporarily Unrequited Love, beomgyu is the worlds best friend, taehyun just suffers a lot before u get there, this actually ends hella fluffy n sappy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-09
Updated: 2019-06-09
Packaged: 2020-04-22 23:33:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19139089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teokkityun/pseuds/teokkityun
Summary: Kang Taehyun dreams of becoming a famous singer one day. But how can he sing if he can’t even breathe?In which Taehyun is in love with a boy who will never look at him the same way he does.(or so he thinks)





	i bloom, just for you

**Author's Note:**

> a few notes:  
> -canon-compliant ish?? theyre still idols, taehyun just has hanahaki skksskks  
> -bedrooms: irl soobin said all the members share one bedroom in their dorm but for au purposes everyone has their own rooms  
> -hanahaki can only be cured if:  
> 1\. the flowers are surgically removed, which removes all feelings for the person as well  
> 2\. the love stops being unrequited  
> -fic title comes from Bloom by Troye Sivan !!

_You’ve got a crown on your head, but I have flowers in my lungs._

 

-

 

Taehyun coughed once, and immediately knew something was wrong. The sharp pain he felt in his chest when he coughed was different from the usual sensation of coughing. It wasn’t supposed to hurt so deep. And the itch in his throat just wouldn’t go away, even after he coughed a second time, then a third, then a fourth, fifth, sixth. His shoulders shook and his chest ached - why did it hurt so much? He coughed once more and felt something dislodge itself from where it was caught in his throat. When he pulled his hand away from his mouth, he saw within his palm a crushed up, slimy orange petal.

 

He blinked down at it for a few seconds, confused, before freezing in place as if he’d been struck by lightning. He tightened his fist around the petal instinctively and whipped his head up, searching for a particular head of curly hair.

 

And there he was, across the room from Taehyun, sprawled out across the sofa, his head resting comfortably in Soobin’s lap. Grinning up at the older boy as if he had all the stars in the sky in his eyes. “Hyung~” he laughed, stretching his arms out and wrapping them around the older boy’s waist, pulling himself closer and snuggling against his tummy, “You’re so cute!!” Soobin simply laughed in response and carded his fingers through the younger boy’s curly locks. “You just keep on saying that,” Soobin chuckled. “Because it’s true, hyung,” the younger insisted. “You really like me that much?” Soobin asked, grinning at the younger.

 

“Yes, hyung is my favourite!” he laughed.

 

In that moment, Huening Kai looked so incredibly happy.

 

And Taehyun felt sick to his stomach.

 

His throat started to itch again, with a level of intensity similar to that of having a cat scratching mercilessly at the inside of his throat. Without pausing to look back another second, Taehyun turned and ran straight into the toilet, not caring when the door slammed behind him, not caring when he knocked a bottle of hand soap off the sink in his haste to grab hold of the sides of the sink for support as he coughed and coughed and coughed. He didn’t know what hurt more - his lungs, his throat, or his aching heart. He’d always known, he supposed. Always known there was no hope that Huening Kai would like him back the same way he liked him. Always known that Kai only saw him as a friend. Always known that Soobin hyung was the one Kai was in love with. So why hadn’t his stupid, stupid heart listened? Why, with every passing day, had he only found himself falling more and more in love with this boy who would never look twice at him? Why had he fallen so hopelessly in love that without his realising, a whole flower had taken root and begun to grow within his chest?

 

He felt his shoulders shake as he hacked up a whole flower.

 

He stared at where it lay, wet, crumpled and disgusting in the sink. Its petals were orange and yellow, but Taehyun had a sinking feeling that the drops of reddish-pink liquid that fell out of his mouth with it weren’t from the petals. He didn’t even have to think to know what flower it was.

 

_“Soobin,” Bang PD said, “Your flower is an Anemone. Yeonjun, yours is a Tulip. Beomgyu, yours is a Poppy.” Taehyun watched as his hyungs nodded in understanding, interested to find out even just a little more about the universe that they would be creating together. “Taehyun, yours is a Daffodil. And Huening Kai,” he said, and Taehyun turned to look at the expression of wonder and eagerness on the youngest’s face as he awaited his flower, and he felt his heart squeeze with affection, “yours is an Icelandic Poppy.” The youngest deflated a little. “But what’s the difference between my flower and Beomgyu hyung’s?” he asked._

 

“Physically, they’re smaller,” Taehyun rasped, staring dizzily at the flower in the sink and slowly pressing one hand against his chest, as if doing so would allow him to trace out the shape of the flowers growing inside him, “…And Icelandic Poppies are hardier, and will grow… in any soil.”

 

Icelandic Poppies for Huening Kai. Fitting, Taehyun supposed, even as his chest ached as he gulped in mouthfuls of air, breathing now not just for himself, but for that hateful plant inside him as well. He gripped tightly onto the sides of the sink, as if doing so would keep him grounded, would keep him from collapsing right then and there, would somehow be able to keep him from loving a boy who didn’t love him back.

 

Oh, his chest ached.

 

The next few days, Taehyun did everything he could to avoid Huening Kai as much as physically possible. Kai was constantly sending him confused and somewhat hurt glances whenever he excused himself from dinner early, or turned down Yeonjun’s offer to join his gaming V-live because he knew Kai would be there, or flinched away every time Kai brushed against him. Every night, his sleep was restless, and full of dreams of flowers, suffocating him, whirling around him like a hurricane, preventing him from moving. Nightmares, really. Even though he hadn’t stopped coughing, he managed to suppress it enough that no one else would notice a thing. It was only a week and a half later that he had his next full-blown coughing fit. They were eating dinner, and everything was fine until Huening Kai turned to Soobin and said, eyes glistening with playfulness, “Hyung, feed me!” And just like that, the food Taehyun was swallowing got caught in his throat.

 

He dropped his chopsticks. Slapped a hand over his mouth, pushed his chair away from the table, got up and ran. Ran like the idiot he was because it didn’t matter if Kai was staring at him like he’d grown another head for running away like that, as long as he never saw him cough up a flower right in front of him. God, he couldn’t breathe. He felt tears prickling at his eyes as he barged his way into the toilet, but before he could close the door, someone thrust his leg between the door and its frame, barring it from closing. _No. Who-_

 

Beomgyu pushed the door open the whole way, concern etched clearly on his face. “Taehyun, what the hell is wrong-” Before the blonde boy could finish his sentence, Taehyun grabbed hold of his shirt and pulled him into the bathroom with him, then darted forward and pushed the door shut. “Taehyun, what-” the worry in Beomgyu’s voice was distinct, and Taehyun felt awful for making his friend feel so concerned, but he couldn’t speak over the burning pain in the back of his throat. So instead, he turned the tap on, hoping that the sound of running water would somewhat drown out the sound of him coughing, coughing, hacking until he felt something dislodge and he watched as not one, not two, but three flowers tumbled out of his mouth at once, together with a few loose petals. He coughed once more, and a few drops of red liquid dripped out. His throat stung. He stood, leaning against the sink for support as he caught his breath. He didn’t even realise Beomgyu had been holding him up for added support as well until he regained normal breathing. He moved his hand and tapped Beomgyu’s, where it was clasped firmly underneath Taehyun’s arm, to let the older boy know that he could hold his own weight just fine. Slowly, hesitantly, Beomgyu retracted his hand. A tense silence lay between them for a few moments, and the only sound was that of the running water from the tap.

 

“…Who?” Beomgyu asked, clear and to-the-point. Taehyun was more than grateful that Beomgyu seemed to already understand the situation without needing Taehyun to explain it to him. But even so… It took him several slow, deep breaths before he managed to gather up enough courage to whisper weakly, “Hyuka.” The look of pity on Beomgyu’s face made Taehyun laugh sadly. “Yeah. It’s Hyuka. Pretty hopeless, isn’t it?” He turned the tap off and scrubbed at the tears threatening to fall from his eyes. What was the point in crying if he already knew nothing would come of it? “Taehyun…” The second Taehyun saw Beomgyu open his arms in invitation, the younger boy’s resolve cracked. He threw himself into the arms of his friend, clinging onto him like his life depended on it and crying quietly into his chest. Beomgyu traced soothing circles on his back, rocking side to side like a parent would to calm their child. “I noticed you coughing these past few days, but I never realised it was…” he trailed off. “How long has it been now?” he asked, when Taehyun had calmed down enough to answer him. “A week and a half,” Taehyun mumbled, hiccupping slightly. Beomgyu pulled away at that, holding Taehyun in front of him so that even if the boy tried to look away, he found himself unable to avoid the weight of Beomgyu’s gaze on him. “A week and a half, and you didn’t tell any of us?! Taehyun, hanahaki is-”

 

“DON’T- Don’t say that word,” Taehyun cut him off abruptly, squeezing his eyes shut. The weight of the silence that stretched out felt heavy enough to crush the flowers in his chest, even though it was only for a few brief seconds. “...Taehyun, you can’t just pretend it doesn’t exist,” Beomgyu murmured, “This- this _thing_ can be fatal. If you don’t do something about it, it’s just going to keep growing and you’re just going to keep coughing until one day you won’t even be coughing anymore because you won’t be able to breathe at all.” Taehyun refused to meet Beomgyu’s eye. “…Are you planning to have it surgically removed?” When Taehyun didn’t reply or meet Beomgyu’s eyes, the blonde shook him gently. “ _Taehyun_ ,” he said, with more urgency, voice pleading. “What if I said no?” Taehyun murmured, and he winced a little as Beomgyu tightened his grip on his shoulders. “What do you mean, no?!” Beomgyu said, worry and disbelief starting to blend together in his voice, and Taehyun had to hiss a hush at him to lower his volume.

 

Beomgyu took a breath before resuming, at a lower volume, “Taehyun, we’re artists. Our livelihoods and dreams depend on our voices and our ability to sing. And I know- I _know_ how much you love singing and performing, Taehyun, I- How are you going to sing and dance if you can’t breathe on any normal day?” Taehyun winced. Beomgyu laid the truth out so plainly, just like that. “Worse yet…” Beomgyu’s grip began to loosen and the older boy suddenly looked incredibly, incredibly vulnerable. “…Tomorrow X Together is all five of us. Not four. _Five_ , Taehyun. If this… _thing_ eats away at your lungs until- until it eats away at your _life_ altogether, I don’t know what I’ll do- I can’t stand the thought of not having one of my best friends with me for the rest of my life, Taehyun. I need all four of you.”

 

“Beomgyu hyung…” Taehyun grabbed hold of Beomgyu’s hands. “I’m… sorry. I’m not- I’m not ready to cut him out of my life.”

 

“I’m not asking you to cut him out of your life, Taehyun,” Beomgyu said, eyes sincere, “Just out of your lungs.”

 

“…I’ll think about it, hyung,” Taehyun finally mumbled.

 

There came a knock on the door. “Taehyun? Is everything alright?” The pain that shot through Taehyun’s chest at the sound of that voice had him gasping in shakily for air as he gripped onto Beomgyu like a lifeline. “Taehyun?” came the voice again, concern more evident this time upon likely having heard Taehyun gasping for air inside the toilet. “It’s fine, Kai,” Beomgyu called out, to Taehyun’s relief, “He’s with me.” “Beomgyu hyung! What happened? Is Taehyun alright?” _No, and it’s your fault, but how could I ever blame you?_ “Yeah,” Beomgyu replied, “He was just feeling really nauseous. Probably ate something wrong for breakfast or lunch, don’t worry. It’s not that serious, he’ll be fine. Just give us another few minutes, yeah?” Taehyun had always been endlessly thankful for the way Beomgyu seemed to be able to understand Taehyun without even having to speak to him, but especially so in that moment. “Okay…” Kai replied, and there was silence for a few moments before they heard the sound of the younger boy’s footsteps padding away from the toilet door.

 

Taehyun breathed out, shakily. “Is he gone…?” Beomgyu nodded. “Can you breathe?” Beomgyu asked, concern clear on his face. “…Kind of, yeah,” Taehyun replied, “Enough to go back to my room.” Beomgyu made sure Taehyun could properly breathe again before slinging one of Taehyun’s arms over his shoulders so that he could support the smaller boy just in case his legs decided to give out beneath him. “Thanks, Beomgyu hyung,” Taehyun breathed, laughing ever so slightly as the blonde helped him sit down on his bed, “I owe you one.” Beomgyu laughed. “Oh you owe me _more_ than one, I’m sure,” he said, “But that’s what friends are for.” He bumped his fist gently against Taehyun’s shoulder. “Hey. Promise me you’ll consider getting surgery, alright?” Beomgyu asked, pinning Taehyun with a gaze so sincere that Taehyun couldn’t bring himself to tear his eyes away this time. “…Okay,” Taehyun replied, slowly, “I promise.”

 

“Goodnight, Taehyun,” Beomgyu said as he walked out of Taehyun’s room, turning off the light as he went. “Goodnight, Beomgyu hyung,” Taehyun replied, before Beomgyu shut the door gently. Taehyun closed his eyes. He tried desperately to think about anything other than pretty, curly hair, long, slender fingers, a warm, painfully endearing smile, and bright, yellow hoodies. Tried to think about anything other than Huening Kai.

 

It didn’t work.

 

He started coughing again, though not as intensely as earlier, but enough to make him have to sit up in order to choke up whatever was stuck in his throat properly. A pair of crushed petals tumbled out of his mouth into his palm, together with a few specks of blood. He stared down at them, his emotions a mess of hurt, longing, hopelessness, and self-pity. He hated that he couldn’t bring himself to blame Huening Kai for any of this mess. How could he blame anything on him when _Taehyun_ was the one who had gone and fallen in love? It was getting harder and harder to breathe with each passing day. Taehyun clutched at his chest with his free hand.

 

Suddenly, the door to his room opened and Taehyun nearly jumped out of his skin. He crushed the petals in his hand and flung them aside as quickly as possible, so that whoever had just opened the door wouldn’t see anything. “Who’s there?” Taehyun rasped, wincing at the way his voice betrayed the fact that his throat was in a horrible state. _Please don’t be Hyuka, please don’t be Hyuka, please don’t be-_

 

“Taehyun?” Of course it was Hyuka. Taehyun sucked in an unsteady breath. “Hyuka,” he managed, “What’s up?” It was a horrible attempt to sound casual after having barely spoken to the other boy for the entire past week. “Beomgyu hyung said you went to sleep early, but I heard you coughing while I was on my way back to my room,” Kai said, “So I came to check if you were really okay… And I brought you warm honey lemon.” He stayed where he stood in the doorway, but stretched his arm outwards into the room. The light cascading into the otherwise dark room from outside the doorway fell upon his arm, and Taehyun noticed the slightly steaming mug Kai was holding. He huffed out a laugh despite himself. Taehyun leaned towards the little table by his bed and switched on his table lamp, casting a warm glow across the room. “Come in,” he said, despite the heaviness in his chest reminding him why he’d been avoiding the other boy the whole week, despite the way a voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like Beomgyu kept warning him not to. Kai waddled into the room almost hesitantly, and gently set the mug down on Taehyun’s bedside table. It was a unicorn-shaped mug that had the words “I Don’t Believe In Humans” printed in rainbow text on one side of it. “Isn’t this mug one of your favourites?” Taehyun asked, smiling as he picked up the warm mug and blew gently at the top of the honey-coloured liquid to cool it a little. “Yeah,” Kai replied, “I was trying to find the one you use all the time - you know, the one with the handle that looks like a squirrel tail - but I couldn’t find it anywhere. So I decided to use my favourite mug instead.”

 

As Taehyun sipped from the mug, a long-drawn silence fell between them. It was unusual. Their silences were rare, on a typical day, because they always had little things to say to fill in the gaps. And even on days when they didn’t have things to say, the silence always felt comforting and easy. This silence was different. It was tense, it was awkward and fearful, it was full of questions unasked and unanswered.

 

And Kai was the one who broke it.

 

“Taehyun, hey-” he blurted suddenly, as if the words had been sitting on the tip of his tongue, trying to fight their way out of his mouth and finally flying out. “Did I- Did I do something wrong this week? Do you hate me for some reason?” Taehyun set the mug down with a thud onto the wooden bedside table, nearly spilling some of the hot sweet drink onto his hand in his haste to put it down. “No!” he gasped, “No, you did nothing wrong Hyuka, and I could never hate you, yo-”

 

“Then why have you been avoiding me this whole week?”

 

Taehyun couldn’t breathe, again.

 

He was coughing. He knew he was coughing, but his mind was too busy reeling with having to explain to Kai why he’d been avoiding him so obviously the whole week. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t breathe. There was something lodged in his throat, but he couldn’t focus. At some point, he’d fallen off the bed and onto the floor, he was on his hands and knees, his throat felt like it was constricting even as he coughed and hacked, he felt uncomfortably warm all over, his vision was starting to blur, and-

 

“TAEHYUN!!”

 

When he blinked again, he saw Huening Kai’s terrified, worried face right in front of his. There were a pair of warm hands on either side of his head, but they were trembling slightly. “Taehyun!” Kai cried out, distraught, “Please, breathe!”

 

And just like that, whatever had been stuck inside his throat fell away. Sweet fresh air flooded his lungs and Taehyun took it in gulps, greedy for the taste of life. He felt dizzy. He fell back and sat down, leaning against Kai for support as he breathed. The other boy didn’t pull his hands away from him, instead simply adjusting their positions so that he could be behind Taehyun, supporting him, instead of in front, encouraging him to breathe. He had one hand on Taehyun’s shoulder, and the other cradled the side of Taehyun’s head. “Breathe, breathe, breathe,” he kept whispering gently into Taehyun’s ear, and amazingly, Taehyun found that he could. He was breathing clearer than he had for the entirety of the past week. When he regained normal breathing, he mumbled to Kai, “I’m okay.” He expected the younger boy to let him go once he’d said it, but instead, he held still for a moment before shifting his arms and wrapping them around Taehyun’s shoulders in an embrace. “K-Kai?” Taehyun gasped, his voice no louder than a whisper. He cursed himself for stuttering. Kai stayed silent for a moment, simply resting his head in the crook of Taehyun’s neck, before speaking.

 

“Taehyun,” Kai said, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for asking you why you were avoiding me this week. I’m sorry for making you panic. I’m sorry for whatever I did to you that made you want to avoid me - you don’t have to tell me what it was, just know that whatever it was, I’m so sorry. You’re my best friend, I-” He tightened his grip around Taehyun’s shoulders slightly. His next words were barely a whisper.

 

“…I don’t want to lose you.”

 

Taehyun’s heart ached. Had he hurt Kai this much without realising by avoiding him? He lifted his hands and placed them gently on Kai’s arms. “Hyuka,” he replied, softly, tracing circles into the soft fabric of Kai’s hoodie with his thumb, “I’m sorry. I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you, I- I can’t tell you what happened, but… It wasn’t your fault. And I’m so sorry my actions hurt you, Hyuka. I’m so, so sorry. I won’t-” He didn’t want to be in pain. He didn’t want Kai to see him coughing. He didn’t want Beomgyu to be disappointed, knowing he didn’t do anything about the flowers in his chest. But more than anything, he didn’t want to see Kai hurt by him any longer. “I won’t avoid you. Not anymore. I promise,” Taehyun said. At that, Kai pulled away, grabbed hold of Taehyun’s shoulders, and turned him around so that they were face to face. “Promise me you won’t leave me,” Kai said, pinning Taehyun with a sincere gaze.

 

There was no hint of a lie in his voice when Taehyun replied, “I could never leave you, Hyuka. I love you.”

 

Kai stayed silent for a moment, before pulling Taehyun forward into his arms for another embrace. And just for a moment, Taehyun thought he felt the weight in his chest grow just barely lighter.

 

Kai never went back to his room that night. He said he was too worried that Taehyun would start coughing again, and wanted to be right next to him in case it did happen again. Taehyun was amazed at how clearly he found he could breathe, lying there in his bed with Kai’s back pressed against his own, and drifting off into a peaceful, flower-less sleep. When he woke up, he found that Kai had turned around over the course of the night, and had his arms wrapped around Taehyun like a giant koala. Taehyun felt warm and comfortable, and the ache in his chest felt lighter than it had the day before. He never wanted to move. But he also didn’t want to cut off blood circulation in Kai’s arm permanently, so he shifted and propped himself up on his arm, turning around so he could see Kai’s adorable sleeping face. He was so beautiful, lying there with the gentle morning sunlight washing over his features. He reached a hand out and brushed the younger boy’s hair off his forehead gently, mesmerised by his peaceful face. He coughed, suddenly, feeling something itching at the back of his throat again. He coughed a few more times, until he felt something tumble out of his mouth into his hand. When he pulled his hand away from his mouth, he saw what looked like a dried-up, wilted flower lying in his palm.

 

He didn’t have enough time to think about what it meant, because his coughing had woken Kai up. Hastily, he threw the wilted bud into a corner where Kai wouldn’t see it as the younger boy blinked blearily, raising his hands up to rub at his eyes. “Taehyun?” he mumbled, sleepily, “Are y’okay? I heard coughing…” “I’m fine, Hyuka,” Taehyun reassured, “Nothing as serious as last night.” Kai hummed in acknowledgement before looping his arms around Taehyun’s waist and pulling him in for a hug, and Taehyun felt his cheeks grow warm in response. “If you say so,” Kai mumbled, still a little sleep-fuzzy. Then he glanced up and smiled up at Taehyun softly. “Good morning,” he giggled. Taehyun itched to run his hands through Kai’s curly locks. He paused for a moment, considering whether or not to do it, before deciding that an opportunity like this didn’t often present itself to him, and he reached down to ruffle Kai’s hair affectionately. “Good morning, Hyuka,” he greeted back.

 

At that moment, the door to Taehyun’s room opened. “Morning Taehyun, have you seen Kai anywh- OH,” Yeonjun said, taking in the sight of the two boys wrapped around each other. Taehyun was good at keeping his cool and staying calm under any situation - exceptional at it, in fact - but the second he saw the surprised yet terrifyingly understanding look on Yeonjun’s face, he immediately felt his cheeks light up. “H-hyung! I- I can explain!” Taehyun stuttered. “Nah, that’s fine, you don’t have to explain anything,” Yeonjun chuckled, “I’m just here to let you know that we have to leave for the recording studio within the next 30 minutes, so yeah, you might wanna…” He gestured in the boys’ general direction. “I don’t know, untangle yourselves and get ready or something.” Taehyun’s eyes widened and he immediately shook Kai’s shoulders, urging him to get up and go wash up so they wouldn’t be late. And Yeonjun simply laughed.

 

Over the next week, Taehyun found himself coughing progressively less and less. And every time he did cough something up, all that came out of his mouth were dried up flowers and leaves. But with everything that was going on, what with promotions, and fansigns, and school, and rehearsals, Taehyun found that he barely had the time to think about what the dried-up flowers meant. Kai still took his breath away every time he smiled at him, and his heart rate still picked up every time he heard Kai’s loud, endearing laughter.

 

Every night since that night, Kai had been coming over to Taehyun’s room to sleep. “It’s to make sure you don’t cough up a lung at night while nobody’s around to take care of you,” Kai insisted. Every night, they would talk about what happened that day, laugh about the funny things and reflect upon the learning points. Sometimes, they talked about other things, like how they couldn’t believe they’d finally made their debut as idols, or how the pasta Yeonjun had made that night had gotten particularly burnt because he’d run off to use the toilet and forgotten that his meatballs were still on the stove, or how Taehyun really wanted to hear Kai play a self-composed song on the piano for him someday. Every night, they’d fall asleep next to each other, or lying back to back, with each other’s warmth seeping through the fabric of their pyjamas and into their skin. And every morning, they’d wake up, tangled in each other, nestled together, warm and happy.

 

It was only one night, a few days later, while Taehyun and Soobin were preparing dinner for everyone together, that Taehyun was hit by a groundbreaking realisation. Soobin commented, “Taehyun, I noticed a week or two ago, you were coughing a lot, even though you were trying to hide it from the rest of us, weren’t you?” Taehyun looked up from his carrots guiltily. “You knew, hyung?” he asked, sounding very much like a child who was in trouble with his parents. Soobin laughed. “I’m not going to scold you, Taehyun, because I asked Beomgyu about it and he told me that he talked to you about it, and you said you would take care of it yourself. I’m just glad you didn’t let it interfere with our work,” he said, as good-naturedly as ever, “But I just noticed it seems to have gone away now, hasn’t it?” Soobin smiled kindly at him. “Did you go see a doctor about it after school someday or something? You haven’t been coughing at all for the past two days.”

 

Taehyun froze.

 

Wait.

 

Soobin was right. He hadn’t been coughing at all the past two days. But that hadn’t stopped Kai from coming to his room at night and choosing to sleep next to him. And he knew, oh god he knew his feelings for Kai hadn’t fallen away at all. Not one bit, if anything they had increased tenfold, because every night he spent lying next to the other boy, falling asleep with him, and then waking up cradled in his arms the next morning had just made him fall further and further in love. But if he hadn’t gotten the flowers surgically removed, hadn’t fallen out of love with Kai, and yet the flowers had stopped coming, that could only mean-

 

Taehyun dropped the carrots and knife onto the chopping board without a second thought.

 

“Soobin hyung,” Taehyun rushed out, “I’m sorry. Could you ask Beomgyu hyung or Yeonjun hyung to help you prepare dinner tonight instead, I- There’s something I really need to do.” And the second Soobin nodded at him, albeit a little confused, Taehyun turned and ran out of the kitchen. Out of the kitchen, and straight towards a certain curly-haired boy’s room. His heart was beating so fast, he thought it would fly right out of his chest. Without even stopping to think twice about what he was doing, Taehyun shoved the door to Kai’s room open, revealing a surprised-looking Kai lying on his bed, scrolling through his phone. As soon as Kai saw Taehyun standing there in the door to his room, breathing hard from having just sprinted across the dorm, a look of steady determination set on his face, the younger boy sat up and put his phone aside. “Taehyun, what-”

 

“Huening Kai,” Taehyun breathed, his voice shaking ever so slightly, but loud and clear as day, “I’m in love with you.”

 

Kai sucked in a sharp breath, as if this had been the last thing he’d expected, but his reaction wasn’t a bad one. Taehyun was so afraid to bare his heart so openly, but the look of hope in Kai’s eyes was everything he needed and more to keep on going. “I’m so, so in love with you, and I have been for- for a while,” Taehyun couldn’t help the laugh that fell through his lips as he continued, “For a long while. I’m in love with your kind heart, and your bright bubbly soul, and your talent with musical instruments, and your beautiful voice, and god- I think you might be the handsomest person I’ve ever met.” Kai laughed in disbelief, as if he was imagining everything Taehyun was saying. “I’m serious,” Taehyun said, stepping closer towards Kai as he spoke, “I love all those things about you and more, Hyuka. And I thought-” He came to a stop when he was standing right in front of Kai, who was still seated on the edge of his bed. Taehyun inhaled shakily. “I thought I would never have a chance to have a place in your heart, but… Hyuka, is there a chance that you might… feel the same way about me?” When Kai didn’t reply, Taehyun instantly began to regret his words. _Fuck. Fuck, was I wrong? Does he not like me the same way I’m in love with him? Are the flowers actually still there, were they just asleep this whole time, fuck, did I screw up, did I-_

 

But then he felt Kai’s gentle hands on either side of his face, pulling him downwards, until suddenly there was a soft, gentle warmth pressing against his lips. Taehyun’s eyes fluttered shut and his heart felt like it was about to explode with the way it was racing. Kai tasted like gummy worms, and apple juice, and happiness and warmth, and it was worlds away from the memory of the bitterness of flowers and iron in his mouth. The kiss was gentle and wonderful, and when they pulled away from each other, both of their eyes were so full of light and affection it was as if they could light up a whole room just by looking at each other.

 

“Kang Taehyun,” Kai said then, his voice soft but confident, breathing life into Taehyun’s lungs with every word he spoke, “I think I’m falling in love with you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, feedback is always appreciated! leave a comment n tell me what u thought, or hmu @tyunningprint on twt!!  
> (PS, the reason why Taehyun stopped choking when Kai told him to breathe is because the flowers in Taehyun's chest respond to Hyuka's presence and feelings, rather than Taehyun's will ;3 )


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